Press

Unfailingly sympathetic music-making throughout…Margaret Fingerhut handles the solo part beautifully [Finzi] in a most pleasing performance that combines expressive fibre and poetic grace…she has a ball in [Clive Jenkins] frothy Concertino. The lingeringly nostalgic slow movement [Clive Jenkins Concertino] draws an affectionately shaped response from soloist Margaret Fingerhut… Finzi’s Eclogue, with Fingerhut again a heartfelt soloist… This enjoyable album is well played in its entirety… Eclogue is a famously beautiful piece, multiply recorded, but the advantage of this performance is its chamber intimacy… the incisive entry points are notable, as is lyric primacy… she deals splendidly with the bustling high spirits of the [Clive Jenkins Concertino] brief opening movement, the languorous central movement, and then the exciting finale… ...beautiful and sensitive performances…. It is Finzi’s now famous Eclogue which gives the CD its title and it’s good to have Margaret Fingerhut as the soloist…she also plays the last work on the disc… the highly attractive Piano Concertino… This would make a very happy purchase. The novelties on this enjoyable anniversary disc are mostly transcriptions of existing works, though when they’re played as winningly as this, I doubt that many Arnold fans will object to a spot of duplication…Fisher and Fingerhut approach [the two violin sonatas] with lyricism and the vivid sense of character that they bring to everything on this disc. The Five Pieces…benefit from the pair’s playful, up-close approach…the less familiar pieces are beautifully delivered…the final ‘Madrigal’ is such a gorgeous little thing that I replayed it three times in row…. A delightful showcase of Malcolm Arnold’s many faces… the arrangements, many recorded for the first time, offer plenty to chew on and enjoy for both performer and listener. Fisher and Fingerhut play with poise and much warmth. A romp through the wit and wildness of an uncommonly memorable creator…The whole recital is a delight and the performers have earned my gratitude. Violinist Peter Fisher plays with verve and commitment, while his partner Margaret Fingerhut rises to every challenge with crisp articulation and tonal richness. ..fine album from SOMM, featuring the violinist Peter Fisher and the pianist Margaret Fingerhut. As well as some quite tricky pieces, there are delightful arrangements of popular stuff such as the Scottish Dances, and his music for film. … a real joy. All these performances are outstanding, the style impeccable, and a worthy tribute to the centenary. All the music is splendidly played by violinist Peter Fisher and British music champion Margaret Fingerhut on piano. This is essential listening for all Malcolm Arnold enthusiasts. No more need be said. The performances by Peter Fisher and Margaret Fingerhut, both long-time advocates of British music, could hardly be improved on for sensitivity and insight.
Like someone telling a story on the piano… a gem of a piano recital. She knows precisely what she’s doing, and does it with charm and vivacity to spare… the wonderful experts at Chandos were equal to capturing in full dimension every nuance and subtlety Fingerhut could devise for them… I would listen with pleasure anytime to her lustrous playing… You’re going to love this one. This first-rate recital is a testament to her exemplary musicianship… I strongly recommend this recording. Margaret Fingerhut’s pianism is of the highest order. The disc is…a true pleasure. This recording is a vindication of her talents… She plays superbly… More Fingerhut on disk anticipated with pleasure and admiration
One of the most radiantly musical of pianists, she plays with such alluring sensitivity and effortless command that one cannot help but be won over. The performances… with Margaret Fingerhut the agile soloist in the Concerto Fantasia, have just the right sparkle and elegance. These performances vindicate the decision to revive the composer, with Margaret Fingerhut excelling in the concerto’s outpouring of lyricism. Margaret Fingerhut’s limpid pianism proves tailor-made for such a gorgeously lyrical, tenderly poetic and subtly integrated offering. This is a concerto which immediately tempts one to return to it, especially when it is superbly played by Margaret Fingerhut.
Miss Fingerhut makes this piece very much her own…a recording that is unlikely to be supplanted. She gives a highly impressive account of the score…she copes admirably with Bax’s demands for a languishing Rachmaninovian manner at one moment, a pounding Bartokian percussiveness the next. She proves an impressive and totally convincing advocate for the score…a quite outstanding disc. An absolute must…magnificently interpreted by Fingerhut and the LPO. Instinctive music making, at once urgently committed and irreproachably sensitive.
One can say no better of Fingerhut’s playing than the piece has been waiting nearly 60 years for the sort of full-blooded performance that she gives it. Its rescue by Margaret Fingerhut in this magnificent recording can only be hailed as a triumph. The performance is excellent…Fingerhut’s sense of possession of these difficult and unfamiliar piano parts is extraordinary. Margaret Fingerhut’s playing is incisive and powerful. Fingerhut has temperament and taste…she throws herself enthusiastically into the music.
Margaret Fingerhut is the deftest and most sympathetic of soloists. Captivating contributions from Margaret Fingerhut. This splendid Fingerhut performance brings a reassessment and the work’s strengths are revealed. It is an intimate, poetic work, shown by Margaret Fingerhut’s sensitive playing. The melodic and rhythmic riches are given worth by the abundant pianistic resources of Margaret Fingerhut. Excellent performance from Margaret Fingerhut.
Exquisitely played…no praise can be too great for the palpable dedication and sensitivity of these performances…in every way, a delightful release. Margaret Fingerhut revels in all its romance and passion. This really is a wholly exceptional disc not just for the rarity of the pieces but for the outstanding quality of the performances and especially that of Fingerhut herself. Dedicated and persuasive accounts by the Academy of St. Martin-in-the-Fields Chamber Ensemble with Margaret Fingerhut.
I have known these pieces for more than 50 years and can confirm that every move she makes is utterly musical and idiomatic. The melodies are allowed to speak for themselves in the great pianistic tradition stretching from Mozart to Ravel… These performances confirm Fingerhut as an outstanding executant. She brings a wonderfully rapt pianissimo to the spiritual slow movement of the Sonata; effortlessly glittering passagework in the scherzo textures; and no exaggeration in rubato. Margaret Fingerhut is an accomplished and stylish advocate; she is particularly eloquent in the dark colours of the Michael Berkeley, and she gives a penetrating account of the Sonata. For anyone interested in 20th century British music, this is warmly recommended. The music is sheer joy for pianist and listener alike, and Margaret Fingerhut makes the most of the music’s lyrical quality; her touch is ideally suited to interpreting this very expressive music. For Strange Meeting and Lennox’s Sonata alone, this CD is invaluable. The fact that it offers more besides… lifts it into the category of essential. Fingerhut is technically up to handling this material. Her exquisite sense of touch brings out a host of colours without over pedalling. As you’d expect from Fingerhut, this is a first class presentation of Berkeley’s music. Margaret Fingerhut… has both eloquence and authority. This is a fine survey of rewarding repertoire, as well played as it is recorded. Piano sound does not come much better than this.
It is difficult to imagine it better played than it is here by Margaret Fingerhut. Fingerhut offers the finest reading (of the Sonata) yet to appear. Margaret Fingerhut possesses a most supple touch and an affirmed sense of spatial sonority, harmonic resonance and silence, all of which make this CD pure enchantment. Throughout this recital she demonstrates an acute awareness of dramatic pacing and of creating a real sense of atmosphere. A strong recommendation. Margaret Fingerhut tackles all this rich-textured music with tremendous confidence and aplomb and the wide range of touch, colour and pedalling that it demands. Margaret Fingerhut’s noble tone and deep sensitivity make every piece seem precious to her. A distinguished survey, with the large scale sonata particularly authoritative. The scherzo is quite dazzling and the Lisztian finale very commanding indeed. This is a performance of great resource, variety of nuance and authority, which I cannot imagine being bettered by a French pianist…altogether a splendid CD. Margaret Fingerhut plays it all with an imperious technique and displays tremendous involvement throughout – a magnificent achievement. This CD is a gem. This is piano playing on a grand scale, demonstrating excellent command of the material. Margaret Fingerhut’s disc cuts a very fine figure in a discography of the highest quality. A masterly account.
Margaret Fingerhut’s playing responds splendidly to the changes of mood and has plenty of personality…very involving, indeed exhilaratingly so. She displays plenty of color and temperament. Altogether this Noches rivals my special favorites, Rubinstein, de Larrocha and Haskil. It is her account which captured my imagination. With her unfailing attention to dynamics, her deftness and strength in the fiery passages and, above all, her sure sense of shaping and phrasing, this rivals the best in the current catalogue. The soloist responds chimerically to the changes of mood, playing with brilliance and power, projecting a strong personality, yet not missing the music’s delicacy.

This beautifully played collection…these are fluent and affectionate performances…communicating real enjoyment. Throughout this highly stimulating and enjoyable programme this fine pianist readily captures the composer’s moods, light or grave. Margaret Fingerhut projects all these pieces with boldness and flair, emphasising their graphic references and quicksilver contrasts with a broad spectrum of tone and wide ranging dynamic control. The quality of this recording…with Margaret Fingerhut’s impeccable playing, is simply excellent. This ideal introduction (to Howells’ piano music) can be recommended with confidence. Exemplary… Fingerhut plays with consummate skill and thrilling conviction. Margaret Fingerhut’s strong and immaculate performances recall Leighton’s own powerful style as a pianist almost exactly. Fingerhut is an insightful, sensitive advocate… this disc is a valuable resource demonstrating playing of verve and intelligence. The performances throughout are quite excellent… huge demands on the pianist, all of which Fingerhut takes in her stride. A marvellous release. Margaret Fingerhut plays superbly; more than that, she is obviously thrilled by the nobly Bachian chorale at the centre of the Fantasia and exhilarated by the finger-twisting syncopations of its final fugue and of the fourth Romantic Piece. An extremely rewarding recital. This is a well-chosen, well-rendered and well-filled anthology. Margaret Fingerhut clearly relishes the technical challenges, while never letting virtuosity get in the way of either clarity or musical sense. This fine recital by the ever-adventurous Margaret Fingerhut…There’s enough music for Fingerhut to make a second CD, which I hope she will…this CD has been a revelation to me.
Moeran’s Third Rhapsody was first performed at a wartime Prom in 1943 with Harriet Cohen. I doubt if she played it as well as Margaret Fingerhut does. The performances…with Fingerhut a brilliant soloist in the Third Rhapsody are absolutely splendid. Margaret Fingerhut a brilliantly spontaneous soloist. Fingerhut’s performance is well studied and beautiful. The virtuosic solo piano part is expertly played by Margaret Fingerhut. Margaret Fingerhut has a dazzling technique and deals well with the technical challenges. You will be overwhelmed by her brilliance. She also projects the beauties of the music nicely. The recording is stunning. More than a brilliant technique is needed…and Margaret Fingerhut is in splendid command throughout, even in the torrential closing section. In particular she has a keen ear for keyboard colour. Margaret Fingerhut is on top of all the demands, musically and physically.
We must be grateful to Margaret Fingerhut for playing it so well. Those who like to explore will enjoy this disc…with excellent performances by Margaret Fingerhut. This affectionate performance…is played with great commitment. Margaret Fingerhut’s pianism is both powerful and limpid, with perfect articulation… most attractive. Margaret Fingerhut is a first-rate soloist.
There’s fluency and delicacy as well as intensity, and Suk’s singing phrases breathe and aspire very naturally. This is appealing playing: plenty of heart, but tasteful, controlled, and deeply sympathetic to this composer’s idiom. This generous two-disc selection gives a delightfully varied idea of his musical personality. Margaret Fingerhut proves a devoted advocate, playing with point and concentration. Margaret Fingerhut’s always sensitive playing…persuasive…the intensity of feeling is affecting. Margaret Fingerhut cannot be praised enough for this recording…she has much affinity with the guileless poetry of the earlier pieces, as well as with the whimsicality of the later pieces. It is obvious that a lot of love has gone into this project. The young British pianist, Margaret Fingerhut, demonstrates to us that she is an interpreter of great sensibility…with a varied palette of dynamic nuances and colour. Hats off to Margaret Fingerhut. Margaret Fingerhut is alive to every aspect of this multifaceted music, whispering its poesies and spurring its stallions as the moment requires. It was high time that a major record label and a musician of substance joined forces to do Tansman justice. Tansman could hardly have found a better interpreter than Margaret Fingerhut…a triumph of piano playing. Beautifully sensitive performances by Margaret Fingerhut… she is the perfect pianist for these idiosyncratically intimate works. Magnificent. Fingerhut has an unerring sense of when to indulge the flamboyance, as well as of how to introduce a poetic quality without becoming unduly sentimental. Her performances are beautifully accomplished throughout. Margaret Fingerhut is a consistently sensitive, intelligent performer…this is easily recommended for both its music and its performer. This is a very distinguished debut recording…Margaret Fingerhut rises to every change of mood…her technique is wholly musical and she has an innate sense of rubato that allows the phrases a natural breath… she is revealed as a pianist of real range…Chandos could not have chosen a better artist. The talented and sensitive young British pianist…her performances have freshness, vitality and considerable temperament…This is a most distinguished and interesting anthology and I recommend it unreservedly. The Mighty Handful in Mighty Hands”…remarkable talent and sensitivity…this resourceful performer commands attention right from the start…top marks to Miss Fingerhut and may she soon entertain us again. A splendid and promising debut. She has a real understanding of the genre and can knock off the rapid fancy…as well as the dreamy meditation. Her greatest talent is for a flexibility of phrasing that always sings. These are in the best sense sympathetic performances and should give pleasure. This attractive Russian collection is a worthy extension of Fingerhut’s catalog. Her rich colors and her firm concentration on melodic shape serves this heart-on-sleeve repertoire well… Recommended. All these pieces get a delicate sympathetic treatment in the playing of Margaret Fingerhut. She shows a chameleon-like ability instantly to switch moods and tone colours; clean cut…rhapsodic…sparkling…energetic…subtly impressionistic…gravely reflective…a stimulating and most enjoyable disc. Ms. Fingerhut’s sympathetic playing allows each work to speak for itself. She brings to her playing great natural authority and a welcome gift for vivid characterisation. An astonishing capacity to adapt herself perfectly to the character of each piece, all played with a profound and elegant technique. Margaret Fingerhut guides us around this pianistic gallery, worth every encyclopaedia, with much spirit.
Margaret Fingerhut gives us a sparkling open-air account of this work…if you are in the market for a first class performance of the Concerto, then look no further. The concerto allows us to discover again with pleasure what an excellent interpreter we have in Margaret Fingerhut…a powerful performance, weighty, utterly clear and forthright, without at all losing the poetry in the slow movement. Margaret Fingerhut gives a thoughtful and musicianly reading that holds a fine balance between the virtuosic and poetic elements. Fingerhut has delicacy and grace, drama and intensity. Margaret Fingerhut gives a magnificent account, superior to other better known names. This CD has given me a most pleasing impression, thanks to the impeccable work of the pianist Margaret Fingerhut. Her interpretation is one of great power, technically irreproachable and musically very poised. The coherence and the sincerity of the phrasing, the naturalness and freshness of Fingerhut, these are the outstanding qualities of this version, with an Adagio of great beauty and poetry.